Defending champions Australia overcame a mighty scare to finally beat Sri Lanka by six wickets after pacer Megan Schutt’s probing spell set them up for a small profitable goal of their girls’s T20 World Cup marketing campaign opener in Sharjah on Saturday (October 5, 2024).
Set a paltry goal of 94, Australia had been 35/3 on the finish of energy play, shedding captain Alyssa Healy (4), Georgia Wareham (3) and Ellyse Perry (17) early of their run chase.
However, a 43-run partnership between Beth Mooney (43 not out) and Ashleigh Gardner (12) helped Australia go previous the goal with 34 balls to spare, as they made 94/4 in 14.2 overs.
Opting to bat, Sri Lanka struggled huge time with Nilakshika Silva top-scoring with 29 not out as they huffed and puffed their option to 93 for 7. Sri Lanka might hit simply 4 boundaries in the entire innings.
Schutt (3/12) additionally equalled South Africa’s Shabnim Ismail’s file scalp of 43 wickets throughout all editions of the T20 World Cup. The Sri Lankans had been 25/3 within the seventh over and 43/3 on the midway stage, they usually by no means recovered from there.
Apparently, the Australians additionally bowled 13 extras, together with 5 no-balls.
This was Sri Lanka’s second lack of the match, having misplaced to Pakistan on Thursday (October 3, 2024).
Temporary Scores: Sri Lanka: 93 for 7 in 20 overs (Nilakshika Silva 29 not out; Megan Schutt 3/12).
Australia: 94 for 4 in 14.2 overs (Beth Mooney 43 not out; Sugandika Kumari 1/16).
Printed – October 05, 2024 07:09 pm IST
